


blue bell sea

by ElderFairy



Category: Detroit: Become Human (Video Game)
Genre: F/M, mermaid!au
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-09-16
Updated: 2018-09-16
Packaged: 2019-07-13 06:28:05
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,764
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16012184
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ElderFairy/pseuds/ElderFairy
Summary: in the lonely sea you found a friend.





	1. Chapter One

your life had always been lonely, tucked away in a little fishing village that overlooked the gray sea. despite the stark black rocks that surrounded the waters, you found comfort in the gentle waves and the distant howl of the wind. here was where you could escape into your thoughts, full of girlish fantasies that will never wither. as you walked along the shores, the bell around your wrist chimed in perfect sync with each step you took. the sound it produced just felt so right next to the call of the sea.

when you came upon huge pillars of smooth oily black rocks that impaled themselves through the sand, that was when you stopped walking. the adults spoke of these things, how children would be swallowed up by the blackness and then turned into one of them. that was why there were so many, and everyone was told to stay away. you were only eight and more inclined to follow your own desires and needs.

to you, these pillars were quiet guardians that protected the land from the rage of the sea. they were your friends, and once upon a time, you were delighted to have a conversation with them each day you came here. now, however, it was the curiosity of what lay behind them that drove you here. the small-bodied you were able to navigate the space between each pillar until you found yourself an opening where the pillars were more scattered. on the other side was more sand and sea. you felt disappointment pile inside you; you were certain it would be another land.

with a heavy sigh, you resigned yourself to stand where the tide could catch your feet. the sky itself was a grayness one shade away from white. you saw a pair of seagulls flying across the horizon, you watch them until their shape disappears. 

sullen now, you kicked at the water, creating a cloud of sand spreading out into the sea. the hair upon your neck prickled as a feeling of being watched overcame you. suddenly, a sharp whistle-like sound penetrated your ears, forcing you to cover them with both of your hands. the shape of a boy materializes out of the still water, his eyes watching you as he made the high-pitched sound, the same sound that was driving you mad. he was near enough for you to attempt to go deeper into the sea and stop him. but despite the urge to do so, you still found yourself yelling at him. “stop that! it’s annoying!”

the silence that followed was oddly strange, you felt invisible noise moving into your ears and a dizziness that lingered for a moment, before dissipating into normalcy. during the episode, your bell incessantly chimed, following some sort of movement that must have occurred from that sound the boy made. when you looked at the boy again this time, you realized that he wasn’t some kind of terrifying monster. he even had a crestfallen look on his face, as if he felt remorse for what he did. still, you weren’t eager to forgive him that fast.

“what’s wrong with you?” you asked, waving your hand. “it hurts and i thought my head was gonna explode!”

you found yourself waiting for him to answer, or to come out of the waters. but instead, the fair-skinned boy only watched you with his deep brown eyes. that was when you realized that he wasn’t a face you saw before. perhaps, he was new to the village? not a lot of people came here, most often only stayed because they ran out of options. suddenly, you felt regret for yelling at him, knowing that he was as downtrodden as you were.

“hey, uh, sorry about screaming at you,” you said, smiling in hope to lighten the situation. you even set your arms down and held them behind your back. this seems to perk the boy up somewhat as his eyes became wide. “you should come here or else the sea will swallow you.” however, the boy made no move to come on land, instead, he turned and started moving. that was when you saw something else, not a pair of legs kicking at the waters but a thick and heavy tail. he disappeared beneath the surface, leaving your mouth agape. still, you wanted to know more about him, so you started walking towards the direction he was swimming towards.

he resurfaced, pointing towards a towering black shape in the distance, before disappearing underneath again. you decided to heed his direction and walked over there, noticing as you got closer that there was enough room to walk before the rocky shape. to your surprise, both water and beach stood before it, creating a circular shape that connected back to the vast sea. here, you stood on the edge of land as you watched the boy swim closer until soon he was sliding out of the water using his arm and his tail following behind. it was a pretty thing, with gray, blue, and red scales that glistened. even the tail fin was incredible, semi-translucent with splashes of pale red and blue.

the boy stopped moving and flopped over into a sitting position. you smelled a musky scent of salt and herbs clinging onto his form. despite the size of his tail, his upper body was thin and littered with small superficial cuts. a few moles dotted his shoulder and arms. slowly, you lowered yourself and sat down beside him, while making sure there was still enough room between the two of you.

silence prevailed, creating an awkwardness that you wanted to get rid of. your eyes caught sight of a fisherman’s net wrapped around a boulder, with the bodies of dead and decaying fish trapped between them. your face scrunched up with disgust at the sight.

“my name is (name).” you looked at him, hoping an icebreaker will solve the awkwardness still lingering between the two of you. with water dripping from his dark locks of hair, he turned his gaze to you. he was studying you, you think, as his eyes move from one direction to the next. you felt weird so you looked away, instead focusing your attention towards the distant clouds. “so i guess the sea is your home?”

again, he gave no answers.

“my home is waaaay over there.” you point your finger towards where you came from. thankfully, this did elicit a reaction from the boy. he turned his gaze towards where you pointed, before looking at something else. with a sigh, you dropped your arm to your lap. yet still, the boy’s eyes followed, seemingly entranced by something. perhaps, it was the bell around your wrist. the attention brought a smile to your face as you held up your arm. “like it? my gran gave it to me. she said it will help her find me if i get lost.”

his eyes drifted up to you and he nodded as if understanding what you just said. this seemed to delight you as you carefully slipped off the bell and showed it to him. a part of you wished you could give it to him, but you knew better than to hand something so precious off to a stranger with a fishtail. “it’s small, but it is noisy,” you explained, swinging the bell back and forth. “see?” the boy’s eyes moved with the bell, entranced. fortunately, he didn’t make any move to grab it, so you immediately brought it back and returned it to your wrist.

“hm so, what’s your name? do you even have a name?” you asked, despite knowing he probably won’t answer. the boy shrugged his shoulders, then tapped a finger to his chest and shook his head. of course, what he truly meant was unknown. instead, you decided to make up your own interpretation of what he wanted to convey. “ah, i see, you don’t have a name.” you then narrowed your eyes and looked at him, trying to get a feel for a name that would suit him.

“how about…connor?”

this seemed to affect him positively, as he nodded his head, causing the locks of hair that had fallen over his forehead to bounce. he then patted his chest with one hand, whilst pointing between you and himself. connor seem to be quite taken with his new name, as there was happiness on his face. still, other than his name, there were still plenty of other mysteries surrounding him that you wanted to solve. it wasn’t until a voice called for you from afar that broke the spell of curiosity away.

it was your grandmother, and at the sound of another voice, connor immediately started shuffling back into the ocean. “connor, wait!” you called to him, stumbling up as he slowly started disappearing into the waters. just as he left, your grandmother’s red face appeared and you gulped, realizing that you made a mistake in coming here. your grandmother grabbed your hand and started guiding you home, but not before scolding you on traveling too far, especially into this area. she was only able to find you when she heard the bell’s sound from afar, or else she wouldn’t have checked here.

as you let yourself be dragged away, you turned your head and saw the distinct figure of connor, watching you from the ocean. you waved at him, sending him a sad smile just as he waved back.


	2. Chapter Two

your grandfather arrived on his break just to scold you some more. so you started crying, blubbering about wanting to do something extraordinary. you never told him or grandmother of connor; it will be your secret to keep. that night, you dreamed of the sea and people with fish tails.

the window in you and your grandparents’ shared room was always kept open. the sound and smell of the sea calmed you enough that both your guardians decided not to install anything. so when small rocks started flinging themselves into the room, you knew something was wrong. one of them almost hit you and another hit grandmother on her hand. fortunately, it was small enough to not hurt her, nor did it wake her up.

rising from your bed and looking out of the window, you noticed someone with a pile of rocks in his arm and his other throwing them at you. temper flared within you as you stood up, collected some of the rocks, and headed out. you almost tripped on the fishing nets as you made your way to them. sadly, you really couldn’t reach where they were. but seeing you outside seem to be what was on their mind, as they let go of the rocks and swam over to you. you noticed that it was connor.

“why did you do that?” you asked, somewhat delirious. “you could’ve woke my grandparents!” you took one of the rocks in your hand and flung it at him just as he poked his body out of the water. connor didn’t make a move to catch it, or maybe he didn’t find the opportunity to catch it, as it hit his shoulder with a soft thud. he flinched, one hand gripping the spot where it hit. slowly, it dawned on you that you’ve hurt him, and soon the menace within you vanished into remorse. “i’m so sorry! i’m sorry!” you said. you made a move to run towards him, but connor dived down, leaving you alone on the shore. the waves lapped at your bare feet as you watched the empty space before you.

you paced the sandy beach, biting at your nails. the summer heat kept you from getting cold but it was the anxiety that was causing your body to shiver. that, and the inevitability of going back home again, possibly to your grandparents being up. then, you noticed something coming towards you. it was a boat with a paddle on it, one of those used by the fishermen when they venture out. connor was pushing it from behind, grunting with exertion. you wiped away the tears just as he let the boat stop near you. he then flopped down, his upper body laying on the sand, looking drained from the activity. carefully, you crept towards him, thinking that he must be injured from the rock you threw. even under the cover of darkness, you didn’t see anything. relief washed over you but not enough to dissuade you from saying, “connor, i’m sorry.”

he looked up at you as he wiped his locks away from his eyes. a forgiving smile crossed his face as he leaned up and tapped the edge of the boat. you then knew that he wanted you to get in, so you climbed in without questioning anything. connor took a hold of the boat, guiding it back into the shallow sea. the paddle was too heavy for you to use, so only your new friend was moving the boat. drifting on the sea, you could finally smell the saltiness that you grew to love. it was so much better than the smoke from the cigarettes and the strange odor from those drugs you saw people use. you pulled your knees to your chest as connor remained steadfast in his hold. the moon dipped low over the horizon, showing a perfect half-circle as its pale light illuminated the sea.

“i guess this sea is your home?” you mused, turning towards connor. he was so near now that you could see his face. he looked at you with a strange fascination, an awe that you quickly noticed. “…why are you always looking at me?” you then questioned, feeling suddenly exposed and vulnerable. connor then pointed to himself and back to the sea. he then held up a single finger, then pointed it to himself, and back to the waters. you quirked up a brow, trying to find meaning to his gestures. the sea was vast but lonely, hiding away its most valuable treasures. that was when it dawned on you what he might be saying.

“oh! you are by yourself, right?” the realization upsets you, knowing all too well of the feeling. you had your grandparents, but they were recluses who barely talked to you. you were sure they loved you and you loved them, of course, but there was still something so untouchable about them emotionally.

connor then shifted and turned his gaze over to the moon. tonight, it was particularly bright and luminous, with a light that was heavier than anything you’ve seen. “thank you for showing me this, connor,” you said. you let the quiet take away, knowing that connor couldn’t vocalize anything. still, it was a peaceful solution to the awkwardness between you and him.

—

the month after you turned 16, your grandfather died. it was a natural death, one that was mourned by you and your grandmother, and a small handful of grandfather’s closest friends. you find it strange that you never knew of his friends, since you were with him and grandmother for almost eleven years now.

still teary-eyed and face swollen, you made your way down to the shoreline to see him. the familiar chimes of your bell drew him to you, as when you reached your meeting place he was already present, sitting on the sandy ground with his fin dipped in the waters. connor was bigger now, with broader shoulders and a slightly muscular body. he looked like he could be 18 to your 16 but you didn’t really know how old he actually was. mermaids could age differently than humans so he could be anything.

you then noticed something different about him, an addition to his tail; it must have appeared between the days you last met him. it was a circular marking, one with a slightly pulsating light that changed from its original blue to a flashing yellow. around and inside the circle was a smooth expanse of flesh quite unlike the rest. you gazed at it, entranced by the sight. “w-what is that?” you asked, hoping that in some form connor will tell you. instead, he slowly glanced down then back up to you, mouth forming into a tight line. there seem to be a conflict riddled on his face, something you wanted to figure out. instead, he pointed to his mouth, then to his throat. he made a move to gently wrap his fingers around it then, before opening his mouth. you’ve long figured out he wasn’t exactly mute. for a long time, you tried teaching him his name and yours; sometimes, ‘hello’ and ‘goodbye’ were attempted.

his eyebrows creased and he was struggling. immediately, the odd ring on his tail turned red, flashing like a warning of some kind. his mouth was forming shapes, which made you even tenser. he shifted and now his stomach was facing down, with only his arms propping him up. “no..connor,” you said as soon as you saw the agony on his face as he tried to vocalize a sound.

“(n….n…)”

you found your own voice catching in your throat as something slipped out of connor’s mouth, sounding too much like the beginning of your name. yet still, a part of you wished for him to stop, seeing how much it was hurting him. connor’s already pallid face was deathly white, with thin gray-blue veins appearing underneath his skin. without hesitation, you stooped down and attempted to hook your arm underneath his shoulder. “connor, you need to go back into the water, now!” after seeing your grandfather on his deathbed, pale and dying, you couldn’t let your only friend die too. the sea will fix him, surely.

connor’s fingers suddenly wrapped themselves around your arm in a grip so harsh that you winced. still, you tried to drag him, shifting the direction so your back was to the sea. soon, you saw him with his mouth hanging upon, screaming a sound that was incomprehensible. something pierced your ears and you unceremoniously dropped connor onto the ground. you found yourself kneeling and curling forth; the sensation was spreading into your mind, beating upon it like horse hooves. you thought you were dying when you saw darkness blot your vision and the sight before you pulsing back and forth. you didn’t notice connor grabbing you by your hand, nor fought as he dragged you towards the sea, his arm around your waist. your head was still above water, with connor holding you tightly against him. and soon, the sensation stopped, receding into a numbness in the back of your head.

when you finally opened your eyes you saw connor, looking back at you with a concerned tilt of his head. you would have reeled back to give you both space but he was holding onto you and you were both in the sea. you never even learned how to swim. now, back in the sea, he looked normal and healthy enough that you sighed in relief. “what happened?” you whispered, unsure of what else to say. to your response, connor only shook his head, before letting out a soft whine. you thought he looked sad, perhaps even trying to apologize to you as he searched your face for forgiveness.

and you began to grow conscious of the sheer closeness between the two of you. it wasn’t like you never saw physical gestures that were beyond hugging and hand-holding, you’ve seen older teens kiss. but, this was connor and you’ve always considered connor your friend. a friend you would like to call a /best/ friend, a friend for life. but friends did not hold each other like this, as you wrapped your arms around his neck. friends didn’t look at one another while their cheeks were red. and, friends would never close their eyes and kiss each other on the lips so gently that their hearts fluttered, before resting their foreheads against one another.

regardless, whether if it was the calming sea or just connor himself, you felt comfortable here. with him so close to you, you almost felt safe and protected, finally not as anxious as you would be in a situation like this. one problem still gnawed at your heart, a thought that occurred to you when you remembered that connor was still a mermaid and not a human. outside of what he already showed you, you still felt as if you didn’t know him well to fully understand him. what he did on the shoreline bothered you enough for it to be foremost on your thoughts. you allowed your eyes to open but you made no other moves. connor sensed something as he, too, opened his. “connor, i should have said this sooner but i really, really want to know more about you,” you said, eyes pleadingly looking at him. “even though we’ve known each other for years now i still felt worlds away from you. you are the moon to my earth and i want…i want to be able to reach you.”

his gentle gaze held a hint of cluelessness at first, before morphing into a sadness that panged your heart. you knew he was trying, but he couldn’t shape his feelings into words. “it’s alright, connor,” you said, gently. “let’s go back.” still with a heavy heart lodged in your chest, connor took you to the shore. as you felt his arm drop from around your waist, you noticed that the bell you wore was gone. you drew in a sharp intake of breath, but you said nothing. connor was watching you with an expectant gaze, seemingly drawn to the empty wrist. “oh i’m fine, don’t worry. it’s just a bell,” you told him, managing a forced smile. connor frowned, unthwarted by your answer, but he remained where he was as you slipped your feet back into your sandals.

you were about to say your goodbye and leave when you remembered something. “right, you won’t come if you don’t hear my bell,” you muttered. “then, i will just call out your name, will that be fine with you?” you turned to look at him. connor nodded, pointing towards his mouth then back to you, and finally pointing towards him. you gave him a small smile, albeit an apologetic one. the bell meant so much more to you and him than just anything – it was a symbol of safety. still, you were optimistic that he will come when you call him. after all, he only had this part of the sea to call home.

“see you soon, connor.”


End file.
